Calling a 17yr old a ‘child’ or a ‘kid’ just pre-taints the jury pool that needs to be in a trial to put away this adult thug so he doesn’t see daylight for a long time. they need to redefine that childhood stops as soon as they hit teen years.
They are still children until they are 18 which is a legal adult, that I will say. However they can be made to be accountable for their actions no matter if they are a child or a teen.
I still say special needs kids need to be taught how to behave.